Ex bikie boss Toby Mitchell fears jail over King Street brawl

Adam Cooper

A judge has been urged not to jail former Bandidos boss Toby Mitchell because of fears of enemies inside prison and health concerns stemming from the two attempts on his life.

Mitchell, 39, a former serjeant-at-arms and member of the Bandidos motorcycle club, pleaded guilty in the County Court on Tuesday to affray for his part in a brawl in a King Street strip club on the morning of October 24, 2010.

The court heard Mitchell and his co-accused, Peter Algie, 43, and Savvacis Tsivicios, 41, fought with staff at Centrefold Lounge after being refused drinks when Tsivicios became aggressive towards a female employee and threw a drink over her, just before 7am.

Prosecutor Mark Rochford, SC, said five staff were injured in the ‘‘violent and vicious attack’’, either from being punched or having glasses or bar stools thrown at them.

One employee suffered a broken nose and cut to the head, Mr Rochford said.

Tsivicios, 41, also pleaded guilty to one charge of affray and Algie pleaded guilty to one count of recklessly causing injury.

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The court heard Mitchell was a changed man since the brawl, as he was now committed to a daily regime of monitoring his health following two attempts on his life.

In November 2011 he nearly died when he was shot five times outside Doherty’s Gym in Brunswick. He spent weeks on life support, lost a kidney and most of his liver.

Then in March last year Mitchell was shot in the right arm when he and other Bandidos were ambushed by the Hells Angels outside the Melton clubhouse of another gang, the Diablos.

Defence counsel, Christopher Dane, QC, said a doctor had submitted that Mitchell should not go to jail as he was at risk of developing chronic kidney disease and the medical attention he needed ‘‘would not be able to be sustained if he was in prison’’.

Mr Dane said Mitchell also had a fear of incarceration given the attempts to kill him had left him depressed, anxious and experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder.

‘‘Having had his life attacked on two occasions by blatant shootings in the street, he is now (potentially) going to be confined with those (people), some of whom do not have a good opinion of him,’’ he said.

Mr Dane told the court Mitchell was no longer a member of a motorcycle club despite his notorious profile. Judge John Smallwood replied: ‘‘I still wouldn’t go to Queensland’’, in a reference to that state’s new anti-bikie laws.

The court heard the three men were ashamed and remorseful for their roles in the brawl, but that it was a relatively minor incident that should have been dealt with by a magistrate long ago.

‘‘It was a blue over a short period of time, spontaneous, in a King Street pub,’’ Mr Dane said.

But Mr Rochford said jail terms were warranted because the violence was unjustifiable, serious and had the potential to seriously hurt people.

Brian Bourke, for Tsivicios, said his client no longer used drugs or was a member of a motorcycle gang, and understood the reality of jail, having served two previous terms.

Kellie Blair, for Algie, said her client had walked out of the bar after throwing a punch when he saw Mitchell grabbed by security staff.

She said Algie’s conviction had an impact on his livelihood, as it meant he could no longer retain a security licence in order to work.

The three defence counsel called on Judge Smallwood to impose fines or periods of community work.